System and method for real-time blocking of a telephone call

ABSTRACT

A preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a call blocking service to which a user subscribes. The preferred call blocking service Includes maintaining an updateable list of calling parties that the user wishes to block from being able is complete telephone calls to the user, maintaining a buffer for storing information associated with the moat recent calling party placing a telephone nail to the user, and recognizing a signal that the user activates to automatically add the most resent calling party to the list of calling parties blocked torn being able to complete telephone calls to the user.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of copending U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 12/189,287 filed Aug. 11, 2008, which is a continuation of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 10/159,542, filed May 31, 2002, which issuedAug. 12, 2008 as U.S. Pat. No. 7,412,049. The entireties of theseapplications are incorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The invention generally relates to telecommunications, and morespecifically, to unsolicited telephone calls.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A variety of additional services are available to a user in connectionwith telephone service, including, for example, call waiting, callforwarding, caller 10, etc. These additional services are designed toenhance the user's telephone service, and to allow the user control overcertain aspects of the telephone service.

Frequently, individuals with telephone service receive annoying ornuisance unsolicited calls, including from telemarketing businesses.Some features exist that permit users to subscribe through theirtelephone service provider and obtain information about the partyplacing an incoming call to the user. However, these services will notshow caller identification data if the calling party has listed itsnumber as private. Additionally, depending on the user's telephoneservice, calls placed from outside the user's local area will alsofrequently not display information regarding the calling party.

Additionally, features exist that permit users to specify that they wanta telephone network to automatically block incoming calls from privatenumbers or from specific calling party numbers. However, these serviceseither automatically block all private numbers (or numbers from out ofarea), or block no numbers. Additionally, services allowing the user tospecify individual calling party numbers to be blocked require a user tocall the telephone service provider, speak to a customer representative,and identify the number to be blocked. If the user does not have accessto the number of the calling party that the user wishes to block, forexample, if the calling party has a number listed as private, the usermay not be able to identify to the telephone service the number toblock.

Therefore, there is a need for a system and method that addresses theseand other problems.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The preferred embodiments of the present invention provide a system andmethod for enabling a user to select, in real-time, calling parties tobe blocked from placing telephone calls to the user.

One preferred embodiment of the present invention provides a callblocking service to which a user subscribes. The preferred call blockingservice includes maintaining an updateable list of calling parties thatthe user wishes to block from being able to complete telephone calls to(i.e. ring) the user, maintaining a buffer for storing informationassociated with the most recent calling party placing a telephone callto the user, and recognizing a signal that the user activates toautomatically add the most recent calling party to the list of callingparties blocked from placing telephone calls to the user.

In accordance with another feature of one preferred embodiment of thepresent invention, the calling block service may include a call blockingapplication server that the user may contact via a computer or other webappliance, either through the internet or another connection, in orderto view and/or edit the list of calling parties that the user wishes toblock from being able to complete telephone calls to the user.

Other features and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent to one skilled in the art upon examination of the followingdetailed description, when read in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings. It is intended that all such features and advantages beincluded herein within the scope of the present invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Many aspects of the invention can be better understood with reference tothe following drawings. The components in the drawings are notnecessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon clearlyillustrating the principles of the present invention. Moreover, in thedrawings, like reference numerals designate corresponding partsthroughout the several views.

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary telephone system that may be used withthe exemplary embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of selected steps of an embodiment of the presentinvention when a call is placed on the exemplary system illustrated inFIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of selected steps of the embodiment depicted inFIG. 2, when the user adds the calling party to the call block listduring the telephone call.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of selected steps of the embodiment depicted inFIG. 2, when the user desires to add the calling party to the call blocklist after the telephone call is completed.

FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of an additional feature ofthe embodiment depicted in FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Generally stated, one preferred embodiment of the present inventionallows a user to selectively block telephone calls from calling partiesin real-time, regardless of whether the calling party is calling fromout of area, or has a private number, and without the need to contactcustomer representatives at a telephone service provider.

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary system implementing one embodiment,among others of the present invention in a telephone call from a callingparty 12 to a called party 14. In various embodiments, the calling party12 may be placing a call from a standard Public Switched TelephoneNetwork (“PSTN”) telephone 16 or a cellular telephone 18, or other typesof telephones. In the case of a PSTN telephone 16, depending on thelocation of the PSTN telephone 16, the calling party 12 may be routedthrough the PSTN system 20 to a switch 22 of the called party 14 at thecalled party's local telephone service provider. In other embodiments,if the calling party 12 shares a local telephone service provider withthe called party 14, the telephone call would be routed directly fromthe PSTN telephone 16 to the switch 22.

Similarly, as depicted in FIG. 1, the calling party 12 may be using forexample, a cellular telephone 18 to call the called party 14. In thiscase, depending on the location of the cellular telephone 18, thecalling party 12, may be routed to a Mobile Switching Center 24servicing the area where the calling party 12 is placing the telephonecall on the cellular telephone 18. From the Mobile Switching Center, thecalling party 12 would be routed through the PSTN system 20 to theswitch 22 for the called party 14. Alternatively, the calling party 12,if located within the coverage area of the local telephone serviceprovider for the called party 14, may be routed directly from thecellular telephone 18 to the switch 22.

As depicted in FIG. 1, the called party 14 may be using a variety oftelephones, including, among others, a PSTN telephone 26, an IP hardtelephone 28, or an IP soft telephone 30 for example as would beunderstood by those skilled in the art. Additionally, the localtelephone service provider may provide service to the called party 14via different switches 22, including a standard switched Central Office,or through a digital softswitch implementation, among others.

The system 10 of the present invention may be implemented through avariety of hardware, firmware, and/or software. In one implementation,the system 10 of the present invention may be implemented within aswitch 22. In one embodiment, the switch 22 is a digital softswitch withall the below-described functions performed by the softswitch. In yetanother implementation of the system 10 of the present invention, theswitch 22 may be a Central Office switch with all of the below-describedfunctions performed by the Central Office switch. In yet otherembodiments, the system 10 may include a softswitch or Central Officeswitch in communication with additional separate elements.

In the shown preferred embodiment, among others the called party 14subscribes to the calling blocking service or system 10. A trigger 32 isplaced on the telephone number of the subscribing called party 14. Inthe preferred embodiment the local telephone service provider providesservice through a standard switched Central Office, comprised ofswitches 22 complying with the Advanced Intelligence Network (AIN). Foradditional details on the AIN, the reader is referred to the commonlyassigned patent to Weisser, Jr., U.S. Pat. No. 5,430,719, which isincorporated herein by reference. In the shown preferred embodiment, thetrigger 32 may be a Terminating Attempt Trigger operating under theprotocols of the AIN. Additionally, in this preferred embodiment, thesystem 10 further includes a Service Control Point (“SCP”) 34. In someembodiments, the SCP 34 will not operate under the protocols of the AIN,however, in the preferred embodiment, the SCP 34 is an AIN SCP 34.

In a preferred embodiment, when any incoming call for the called party14 is received at the switch 22, the trigger 32 activates and the switch22 holds the incoming call. The switch 22 also sends a query 36 to theSCP 34. In the preferred embodiment the query operates under theprotocols of the AIN. In other embodiments, the query may be any of avariety of communications between the switch 22 and the SCP 34, as wouldbe known to one skilled in the art. Once the trigger 32 activates, thecall is held until the query 36 is resolved. As illustrated in FIG. 1,the switch 22, generates the query 36.

The system 10 further includes in the preferred embodiment, callblocking logic 38. In some embodiments, the call blocking logic 38 willbe contained within the switch 22. In some implementations the callblocking logic 38 will be contained within the SCP 34. In otherembodiments, the call blocking logic 38 may be contained on a separateserver in communication with the SCP 34 and/or switch 22. Inimplementations where the call blocking logic 38 is on a separateserver, the switch 22 may be configured to send a message 44 directly tothe call blocking logic 38 server, rather than a query 36 to the SCP 34.In various embodiments, the message 44 may be any of a variety ofcommunications between the switch 22 and the server.

In a preferred embodiment, the system 10 also includes a buffer 40. Thebuffer 40 stores information concerning a calling party 12 placing acall to the called party 14, including at least a telephone numberassociated with the calling party 12 and the name of the calling party12. Note that even if the calling party 12 has a private telephonenumber, the telephone number of the calling party 12 is known to thelocal telephone service provider. Accordingly, a private telephonenumber and name will be stored in the buffer 40, even though thetelephone number of the calling party 12 may not be displayed to thecalled party 14. The telephone number of the calling party 12 is enteredor written into the buffer 40 as the “last call from” entry for thecalled party 14.

Accordingly, in the preferred embodiment, there will be a buffer 40associated with the called party 14 as part of the called party's 14subscription to the calling blocking system 10. In the embodimentdepicted in FIG. 1, the buffer 40 for each called party 14 subscribingto the system 10 will be contained in the call blocking logic 38. Inother embodiments, the buffer 40 may be contained within the switch 22.In yet other embodiments, the buffer 40 may be contained in the SCP 34,on a server collocated with the call blocking logic 38, or on adifferent server from the call blocking logic 38.

Further, the call blocking logic 38 compares the telephone numberassociated with the calling party 12 stored in the buffer 40, with acall block list 42. The call block list 42 contains the informationassociated with calling parties that the called party 14 wishes to blockfrom being able to complete a telephone call to (i.e. ring) the calledparty 14. In the preferred embodiment, the call block list 42 includes adatabase. The preferred call block list 42 preferably includes at leasta name and a telephone number associated with each calling party 12 onthe list of calling parties blocked from being able to ring the calledparty 14.

The call blocking logic 38 compares the information for the callingparty 12 attempting to place a call to the called party 14 to theinformation contained in the call block list 42 associated with thecalled party 14 in order to determine whether or not the calling party12 will be allowed to continue placing the telephone call to the calledparty 14.

After making the comparison, the call blocking logic 38 replies to thequery from the switch 22, either through the SCP 34, or in otherembodiments directly to the switch 22 via message 44. If the callingparty 12 is not on the call block list 42 as one of the calling partiesthat the called party 14 wishes to block, the switch 22, upon receivinga response from the call blocking logic 38, will complete the call tothe called party 14.

In some implementations, the trigger 32, call blocking logic 38, buffer40, and call block list 42 are all contained within a switch 22 within alocal telephone service provider. In other implementations, the callblocking logic 38, buffer 40, call block list 42 are contained on an SCP34 communicating with a PSTN Central Office switch 22. In yet otherimplementations, the call blocking logic 38, buffer 40, and call blocklist 42 may be contained within a separate server communicating with theswitch 22 either directly via a message 44 or through an SCP 34.

Operation

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing selected steps 50 of the operation of thesystem 10 when a calling party 12 (FIG. 1) attempts to place a telephonecall to a called party 14 (FIG. 1). In this implementation, a callingparty 12 (FIG. 1) initiates a call (step 52). The call is received atthe switch 22 (FIG. 1) (step 54). When the call is received at theswitch 22 (step 54), determination is made whether the called party 14(FIG. 1) subscribes to the calling blocking system 10 (FIG. 1) (step56). This determination may be made by a trigger 32 (FIG. 1) placed onthe telephone number of the called party 14 (FIG. 1), or by othermethods that would be known to one skilled in the art.

If the called party 14 (FIG. 1) does not subscribe to the system 10(FIG. 1), the telephone call is forwarded to the called party 141(FIG. 1) (step 58). If the called party 14 (FIG. 1) does subscribe tothe calling blocking system 10 (FIG. 1), the call is halted and a query36 (FIG. 1) sent to the call blocking logic 38 (FIG. 1) (step 60). Thecalling party's number is entered into a buffer 40 (FIG. 1) (step 62).

The call blocking logic 38 (FIG. 1) then determines whether or not thecalling party 12 (FIG. 1) appears on the called party's call block list42 (FIG. 1) (step 64). If the calling party 12 (FIG. 1) is not on thecalled party's call block list 42 (FIG. 1), the call blocking logic 38(FIG. 1) responds to the query 36 (FIG. 1) (step 66). At that time thetelephone call is routed to the called party 14 (FIG. 1) (step 58).

If the calling party 12 (FIG. 1) appears on the called party's callblock list 42 (FIG. 1) (step 64), the call blocking logic 38 (FIG. 1)provides that response to the query 36 (FIG. 1) (step 68). At thatpoint, the telephone call from the calling party 12 (FIG. 1) is blocked(step 70), ending the telephone call (step 72). Optionally, amongothers, a terminating announcement or continued ringing tone may beplayed to the calling party 12 (FIG. 1).

In one preferred embodiment of the present invention, during thetelephone call, should the called party 14 (FIG. 1) desire to place thecalling party 12 (FIG. 1) on the call block list 42, (FIG. 1), thecalled party 14 (FIG. 1) may update the call block list 42 (FIG. 1)during the telephone call according to the selected steps 80 depicted inFIG. 3. As depicted in FIG. 3, during the telephone call, the switch 22(FIG. 1) monitors the telephone call for a mid-call signal from thecalled party 14 (FIG. 1) (step 82). If during the telephone call, thecalled party 14 (FIG. 1) does not wish to block the calling party 12(FIG. 1) (step 84), the telephone call continues (step 86) untilcompletion (step 88) as depicted in FIG. 3. If the called party 14(FIG. 1) does wish to block the calling party 12 (FIG. 1) during thecall (step 84), the called party 14 (FIG. 1) activates the mid-callsignal to the switch 22 (FIG. 1) (step 90).

There are various signals that could be used by the system 10 (FIG. 1)to implement a mid-call signal according to step 90, as would be knownto one of ordinary skill in the art. For example, and not as alimitation on the present invention, in the event that the called party14 (FIG. 1) is using a PSTN telephone 26 (FIG. 1), the called party 14(FIG. 1) may activate a DTMF tone or a switch-hooked flash, signaling tothe switch 22 (FIG. 1) in accordance with step 90. In other embodiments,various signals could be implemented by the system 10 in order toprovide a mid-call signal to the switch 22 (FIG. 1). Including by way ofexample, a generic sequence of numbers for anyone subscribing to thecall blocking service, or a unique PIN-type number for each individualcalled party 14 (FIG. 1) subscribing to the call blocking service of thepreferred embodiment of the present invention.

Upon receiving the mid-call signal from the called party 14 (FIG. 1)(step 90), a message is sent to the call blocking logic 38 (FIG. 1)(step 92). In response to the message (step 92), the call blocking logic38 (FIG. 1) reads the calling party 12 (FIG. 1) telephone number fromthe buffer 40 (FIG. 1) (step 94). The calling party 12 (FIG. 1) numberstored in the buffer 40 (FIG. 1) is then added to the call block list 42(FIG. 1) for the called party 14 (FIG. 1) (step 96).

The call blocking logic 38 (FIG. 1) then responds to the switch22(FIG. 1) (step 98), and the telephone call is blocked, terminating thetelephone call (step 100). The calling party 12 (FIG. 1) is alsoprevented from completing any further telephone calls to the calledparty 14 (FIG. 1), in accordance with the steps 50 depicted in FIG. 2.

In the alternative, as depicted in FIG. 4, should the called party 14(FIG. 1), desire to place the calling party 12 (FIG. 1), on the callblock list 42 (FIG. 1) after the conclusion of the telephone call (step88), the called party 14 (FIG. 1) may accomplish this in accordance withthe selected steps 110 of FIG. 4. As illustrated in FIG. 4, once thetelephone call is completed and the connection is terminated (step 112)a called party 14 (FIG. 1) may wish to block the calling party 12(FIG. 1) from further calls (step 114). Should the called party 14(FIG. 1) not wish to block the calling party 12 (FIG. 1) after thecompletion of the telephone call, no further action is needed (step116).

However, should the called party 14 (FIG. 1) wish to block the callingparty 12 (FIG. 1) from placing future telephone calls to the calledparty 14 (FIG. 1) after the completion of the telephone call, the calledparty 14 (FIG. 1) activates the after-call signal to the switch 22(FIG. 1) (step 118). In the preferred embodiment, this after-call signalmay be a triggering event such as a Star Feature Code, as would be knownto one of ordinary skill in the art. In other implementations, otherafter-call signals may be used in accordance with the present invention,including various signals by a PSTN telephone 26 (FIG. 1), an IP hardtelephone 2, (FIG. 1), and/or IP soft telephone 30 (FIG. 1) to signalthe switch 22 (FIG. 1), as would be known to one of ordinary skill inthe art.

Upon receiving the after-call signal (step 118), the switch 22 (FIG. 1)sends a message to the call blocking logic 38 (FIG. 1) (step 120). Insome embodiments, the switch 22 (FIG. 1) communicates directly with thecall blocking logic 38 (FIG. 1). In other embodiments, the switch 22(FIG. 1) will communicate with the call blocking logic 38 (FIG. 1)though the SCP 34 (FIG. 1).

In response to the message (step 120), the call blocking logic 38(FIG. 1) reads the telephone number for the calling party 12 (FIG. 1)from the buffer 40 (FIG. 1) (step 122). The telephone number of thecalling party 12 (FIG. 1) is then added to the called party's call blocklist 42 (FIG. 1) (step 124), thereby insuring that the calling party 12(FIG. 1) may no longer place telephones to the called party 14 (FIG. 1)in accordance with the selected steps 50 of FIG. 2.

Review of the Blocked Calling Parties

In addition, in accordance with another feature of the present system10, in some implementations, the called party 14 subscribing to thesystem 10 will be able to view and/or edit the call block list 42 via acomputer or other networked data appliance 130. FIG. 5 depicts apreferred embodiment where the call block list 42 is accessible by a webserver 138. In some embodiments the web server 138 will be the sameserver on which the call blocking application 38 and call block list 42reside. In other embodiments, the call blocking application 38 and callblock list 42 will reside on a separate server from the web server 138,both servers co-located. In yet other embodiments, the web server 138will be completely remote from the call blocking application 38 server.

As depicted in FIG. 5, there are various alternative ways the calledparty 14 may communicate with the server containing the call block list42. In some embodiments, the called party 14 will use a computer 130 tocommunicate with the web server 138 through the called party's InternetService Provider (“ISP”) 132 connected to a data network, such as theInternet 134. In this implementation, the web server 138 is incommunication with the data network, for instance the Internet 134.

In various embodiments, the called party 14 may communicate directly tothe Internet 134 rather than through an ISP 132, or the called party maycommunicate directly with the web server 138 through the firewall 136.In yet other embodiments, the local telephone service provider 22 mayalso act as the ISP 132 for the called party 14. In the preferredembodiment, the web server 138 will be protected by a firewall 136 toensure security.

In yet other embodiments, the called party 14 may access the web server138 directly through the local telephone service provider, without theneed to access an ISP 132 or the Internet 134. In such embodiments, theweb server 138 may be located within the local telephone serviceprovider, or may be a remote server in communication with the localtelephone service provider, and the called party 14 establishes aconnection with the local telephone service provider. In thisembodiment, the local telephone service provider does not act as an ISP132 for the called party 14, but provides the called party 14 aconnection to the server containing the call block list 42.

In the preferred embodiment, the called party 14 will only be able toview and/or edit the call block list 42 for that called party 14, andwill not be able to view or edit the call block list 42 for othersubscribers to the system 10. In the preferred embodiment, the calledparty 14 will be able to view the information stored on the call blocklist 42 for each calling party 12 on the list of calling parties to beblocked. This information may include the name and telephone number ofthe calling parties on the list, as well as other information. Thecalled party 14 can communicate with the server containing the callblock list 42 in a variety of manners, including through the use ofselectable menus, a graphical user interface, or other methods,including those disclosed in the commonly assigned patent to Koch, etal., U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/012,746, which is incorporatedherein by reference.

In the preferred embodiment, the call block list 42 will be presented tothe called party 14 as a numbered list, in reverse chronological orderby date that each calling party to be blocked was added to the callblock list 42. In other embodiments, the information may be ordered inalternative ways including alphabetically by calling party name,numerically by calling party telephone number, etc. Additionally, theinformation may appear in database, spreadsheet, or other format. In yetother embodiments, the called party 14 will be able to select the formatfor the call block list 42, including the ordering of the informationwithin the desired format.

Note that calling parties with private numbers will appear on the callblock list 42, however, the identifying information for these callingparties will be masked. For example, in the preferred embodiment, theweb server 138 will display only the word “private” for the name and theword “private” for the telephone number of calling parties withtelephone numbers designated private. However, other information, suchas the date that a calling party 12 with a private number was added tothe call block list 42 may be displayed to the called party 14 throughthe web server 138. In other embodiments, other terms may be used tomask the information for calling parties with telephone numbers markedprivate.

In addition to viewing the call block list 42, the called party 14 willbe able to edit the list, including deleting calling parties from thecall block list 42. If the called party 14 deletes a calling party 12from the call block list 42, that calling party 12 will once again beable to place telephone calls to the called party in accordance with thesteps 50 of FIG. 2. The deletion of calling parties from the call blocklist 42 may be accomplished in a variety of methods, includingselectable menus, a graphical user interface, or other methods,including those disclosed in the commonly assigned patent to Koch, etal., U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/012,746, incorporated herein byreference.

In some embodiments, when accessing the call block list 42 via thecalled party's computer or web appliance 130, the called party 14, mayadd the last calling party 12 to place a telephone call to the calledparty 14 to the call block list 42. In the preferred embodiment, thebuffer 40 stores information until a new telephone call is placed, orattempted to be placed, in accordance with the steps 50 of FIG. 2.Accordingly, at any time after a calling party 12 places a telephonecall to the called party 14, up until the next telephone call for thecalled party 14, the buffer 40 will contain the information relating tothe last calling party 12. The information contained in the buffer 40 isnot overwritten until a new telephone call to the called party 14 isattempted.

Accordingly, if after a telephone call, the called party 14 desires toreview the call block list 42, the called party 14 may communicate withthe web server 138 via the called party's computer or web appliance 130as discussed above. When communicating with the web server 138, thecalled party 14 may desire to add the most recent calling party 12 tothe call block list 42. In the preferred embodiment, the web server 138will allow the called party 14 to add the most recent calling party 12stored in the buffer 40 to the call block list 42 via the called party'scomputer or web appliance 130. The addition of calling parties to thecall block list 42 may be accomplished in a variety of methods,including selectable menus, a graphical user interface, or othermethods, including those disclosed in the commonly assigned patent toKoch, et al., U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/012,746, incorporatedherein by reference.

In addition, in the preferred embodiment, prior to deciding whether toadd the last calling party 12 in the buffer 40 to the call block list42, the called party 14 will be able to view the information containedin the buffer 40 for the last calling party 12. When directed by thecalled party 14, and the web server 138 will access the buffer 40, anddisplay the information contained in the buffer 40 to the called party14. After reviewing the information, the called party 14 will be able toselect the calling party 12 stored in the buffer 40 for addition to thecall block list 42. In this manner the called party 14 will be able toreview the last calling party 12 before deciding whether to add thiscalling party 12 to the call block list 42.

It should be emphasized that the above-described embodiments of thepresent invention, particularly, any “preferred” embodiments, arepossible examples of implementations, merely set forth for a clearunderstanding of the principles of the invention. Many variations andmodifications may be made to the above-described embodiment(s) of theinvention without departing substantially from the spirit and principlesof the invention. All such modifications and variations are intended tobe included herein within the scope of the present invention andprotected by the claims.

1. A system, comprising: a memory that stores executable instructions;and a processor, communicatively coupled to the memory, that facilitatesexecution of the executable instructions to perform a method comprising:adding a telephone number of a calling party of a telephone call to datarepresenting a set of blocked callers, wherein the data representing theset of blocked callers is editable for review during the telephone call,based on receipt of an update signal received during the telephone call.2. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is included in a switch.3. The system of claim 2, wherein the data representing the set ofblocked callers is stored within the memory.
 4. The system of claim 2,wherein the switch is a Softswitch.
 5. The system of claim 1, whereinthe update signal comprises a dual tone multi-frequency tone signal. 6.The system of claim L wherein the update signal comprises a signal froman Internet protocol telephone device configured to use an internetprotocol.
 7. The system of claim 1, wherein the data representing theset of blocked callers is stored by a server device.
 8. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the update signal comprises an encoding of hypertextmarkup language data.
 9. The system of claim 8, wherein a communicationfrom a device operated by a called party of the telephone call comprisesthe hypertext markup language data.
 10. A method, comprising: updating,by a device including a processor, data representing a blocked callerlist associated with a called party, wherein the data representing theblocked caller list is updatable for review while a telephone call froma caller to the called party is in progress.
 11. The method of claim 10,wherein the updating comprises adding a telephone number associated withthe caller to the data representing the blocked caller list.
 12. Themethod of claim 10, wherein the updating comprises updating the datarepresenting the blocked caller list stored on a server.
 13. The methodof claim 1.0, further comprising: receiving, by the device, a signalfrom the called party during the telephone call, wherein the signalcomprises information indicating that the called party desires to blockthe caller.
 14. The method of claim 13, wherein the receiving the signalfrom the called party further comprises receiving a communication from aserver.
 15. The method of claim 13, wherein the receiving the signalcomprises receiving a signal including a representation of a dual tonemulti-frequency tone.
 16. The method of claim 13, wherein the receivingthe signal comprises receiving a signal from an Internet protocoltelephone device configured to use an internet protocol.
 17. A computerreadable storage medium storing computer-executable instructions that,in response to execution, cause a device including a processor toperform operations, comprising: presenting information representative ofa set of blocked callers during a telephone call to a called party,wherein the information representative of the set of blocked callers Iseditable during the telephone call.
 18. The computer readable storagemedium for claim 17, wherein the operations further comprise: receivinga signal from the called party during the telephone call that the calledparty requests to block the caller.
 19. The computer readable storagemedium of claim 18, wherein the signal is including a representation ofa dual tone multi-frequency tone.
 20. The computer readable storagemedium of claim 18, wherein the signal is including a representation ofan internet protocol signal.